The Profile of Higher Education Sport Students in England: Implications for Successful Transition and Effective Teaching and Learning Practice

Abstract

Limited studies have explored sport students experiences of transitioning into university, which is surprising considering the high annual numbers recruited to English Higher Education (HE) sport programmes. The primary study aim was to gain specific insight into the expectations, motivations, anticipated challenges and concerns of first year sport degree students who had recently enrolled at an English post 1992 university. Three hundred and thirty-four participants completed a 23-question survey, with key findings outlining the profile of students. Most notably, this indicated a high frequency of vocational entry qualifications, the dominance of expectations around employability and a general lack in confidence to successfully integrate, both socially and academically. Strategies and recommendations to inform future curriculum reform which best support the social and academic needs of modern day HE sports students are presented, as are limitations and avenues for future research.